September 10, 2008 (Washington, D.C.)  - Proskauer Rose LLP, an international law firm with more than 750 lawyers worldwide, announced that Carolyn Doppelt Gray, a former senior official at the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, has joined the firm as special counsel in the Labor and Employment Law Department.  Based in Washington, D.C., she also will serve as co-chair of the firm's Accessibility and Accommodations Practice Group, along with Allan Weitzman, partner and head of the Labor and Employment practice in Boca Raton, Fla. 

Ms. Gray counsels clients in a range of industries on all aspects of disability-related employment and accessibility requirements under federal, state and local law.  She has particular experience in matters involving the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Family and Medical Leave Act, Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 as well as related education, civil rights, insurance and construction statutes.

"As Congress appears ready to enact amendments to the ADA that will expand protection for a broader range of individuals with disabilities, employers will need to pay increased attention to their ADA-related employment issues," said Paul Salvatore, co-chair of Proskauer's Labor and Employment Law Department. "This expansion will be compounded by the forthcoming revisions to Titles II and III building standards for state and local government, business facilities and operations.  Compliance with the new law will be challenging, particularly for companies in industries such as sports, lodging and gaming, entertainment, real estate and restaurants, among others."

"Carolyn is one of the country's foremost practitioners on ADA-related issues, having served in government, in private practice and in business," added Mr. Weitzman. "Her background and experience will be invaluable in providing sophisticated advice to a range of clients and we are delighted to welcome her to the firm."

Comprised of senior lawyers across Proskauer's national platform, the national Accessibility and Accommodations Practice Group will provide innovative strategies for dealing with the full range of accessibility issues.

Immediately prior to joining Proskauer, Ms. Gray was a partner and chair of the Disability Practice Group at Barnes & Thornburg. She was previously a senior White House appointee to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services where she was a principal deputy assistant secretary and commissioner, Administration on Developmental Disabilities. Earlier in her career, she served at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as an advisor for the Fair Housing Act's accessibility process. She was also director of the Office of Women's Business Enterprise at the U.S. Small Business Administration and executive director of the President's Advisory Committee on Women's Business Ownership and president of a juvenile furniture manufacturing firm.

With more than 150 lawyers, Proskauer Rose LLP's management-oriented labor, employment and employee benefits department is one of the oldest and largest in the nation.  It has been described by Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyer as "one of the premier employment practices nationwide," with a "deep bench" that puts Proskauer "in a league of its own and home to a number of the sector's best known figures."  Spanning the firm's offices in the U.S. and Paris, the department handles complex employment law and employment litigation matters as well as traditional collective bargaining and labor relations matters. It also includes one of the largest employee benefits and executive compensation practices in the nation, with its own litigation group to handle fiduciary and other claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, as well as one of the country's largest immigration groups and an international labor and employment practice.